Promoting Self by Putting Others Down

And the men who hold high places must be the ones to start
To mould a new reality…closer to the heart (Rush)

You might wonder, “Why is Ron Miller, Jr. a Christ follower?” My simple answer is that no one has ever compelled me to good deeds more than Jesus Christ. His life was one of sacrifice and service. Jesus is worthy to be worshipped, celebrated and followed because He died for the sins of humanity. I pledge my allegiance to Jesus because He gave his life to give me a better life. I will forever feel a sense of indebtedness to live a life worthy of this sacrifice.

In John 15:13, Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down hid life for his friends.” Jesus used his high place as the King of kings and Lord of lords to mold a new reality by sacrificing His life for others.

This morning, on 9/11/08, I woke up and turned on my favorite early morning news show—Morning Joe. This week has been so busy I forgot that today is the seventh year after the most destructive and horrific terrorist attack on American soil. As I watched the tributes to our fallen heroes and gazed upon the memorials, my heart was stirred by the sacrifice and service of the brave men and women who lost their lives on that tragic day.

In today’s world, as we are bombarded with negative stories on news channels, I am constantly longing for a story that inspires me. Once again, as I watched the tributes to our 9/11 heroes, I found such a moment.

It was refreshing to witness John McCain and Barack Obama visit the tribute at the site of the World Trade Center and shake hands of people who had lost loved ones on 9/11. It was good to see our governmental leaders standing together in unity.

I had another moment of inspiration this year and it was during the Olympics. I know most Americans were elated to watch athletes like Michael Phlelps set Olympic records for Gold medals and witness many Olympians break world records. I concur that these were awesome moments.

However, there were Olympic moments that touched me deeper than the world record events. It was the sportsmanship that I saw during the contests. I was blessed to witness Olympians compete against one another and then hug and congratulate their opponent while saying, “good job” after the event or race. Their complement was a great sign of respect and an acknowledgement that competition makes all of us better. It was as if they were saying, “Thank you for motivating me to train harder by giving me your best.”

Why I am writing this blog? I am writing this blog because I am disappointed at the lack of civility and sportsmanship I witness in our society today. I don’t like to see an athlete scoffing another athlete during competition. They should be gracious in victory. I am tired of listening to speeches by our politicians that contain more negative content about their opponent than solutions to the problems we face today as a nation. I want leaders who don’t have to put others down to promote themselves. I have no problem when they raise awareness about the differences in policies. I just wish they would do it with tact and humility. It agitates me when commentators like Bill O’Reilly and Keith Olbermann make demeaning statements about one another. Why can’t they report and comment on the news without deriding each other?

When I was a young athlete, my father taught me to always let the scoreboard do the talking. In other words, don’t put others down to promote yourself.

It is the epitome of insecurity and smallness when people say something derogatory about someone else or taunt them to promote themselves and their agendas. I will not fall for or tolerate such tactics.

On this 9/11 day of remembrance, I salute and thank all those people who lost their lives to help others. Their stories are great reminders to us all that living your life to lift people up is always better than living it to pull them down.

Let’s forge a new reality by holding our leaders of this nation accountable to use their influence and talents to lift people up. And, let’s do our part to honor the sacrifice of Jesus and the fallen heroes of 9/11 by committing to live a life of service with a good attitude and gratitude of heart.